DWM 326 – No Place like Home

Whilst showing his latest companion, Erimem, around her new home, the Doctor discovers that the TARDIS seems remarkably keen to be as unhelpful as possible. Almost as if it wants rid of its occupants…

1 Comment

Styre
on May 7, 2016 at 9:24 PM

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

With thanks to OG poster Bobod.

It’s sort of an odd thing to characterize a 35-minute Doctor Who audio drama as a tale of two halves, but that’s exactly what we get with “No Place Like Home,” the third free release to accompany an issue of Doctor Who Magazine. On the whole, it’s a fine release, but the tone of the opening jars somewhat with the tone of the conclusion. Regardless, this play is more than suitable for its role as a free “bonus” release, and it’s an enjoyable way to hear more of Iain McLaughlin’s work.

The first half of “No Place Like Home” concerns the Doctor (Peter Davison) showing new companion Erimem (Caroline Morris) around the TARDIS. McLaughlin shows a real talent for comedy in these scenes: while they’re based upon fan minutiae, the jokes are genuinely funny and would easily work for a broader audience — you just know Davison was most embarrassed of Pertwee’s fashion sense, and his trademark sarcasm is used to hilarious effect. Erimem is given some fine character development as well — I loved the scene with the frozen pool — as she’s shown to be intelligent and capable, viewing the infinite corridors of the TARDIS with wonder and curiosity.

Unfortunately, the second half of the play is all over the map. The concept of an alien force gaining control of the TARDIS is fine, and McLaughlin’s decision to up the absurdity content by revealing this villain to be a megalomaniacal mouse (Mark Donovan, going delightfully over the top) is indeed hilarious — but somehow it just doesn’t fit together. Perhaps the decision to make the mouse sympathetic had something to do with it; I think I would have preferred it had the villain been utterly ludicrous and unmotivated. The scene with the Doctor and Erimem cracking up is surprisingly believable, though nothing even remotely similar has been seen before with Davison. I also don’t particularly care for the inclusion of Shayde (Donovan again) — he’s basically devoid of personality, and his role seems incidental. Yes, he’s a character from the DWM comics, but that’s not enough to warrant his appearance.

David Darlington handles the sound design, and gets to play around with the massive TARDIS interior. Echo effects seemed to increase the deeper the Doctor and Erimem got into the ship, and the massive dimensional control room was impressively represented — I just wish we could have heard the cloister room on its own, without listening through an intercom. Gary Russell’s direction is as solid as ever.

Yes, it has some flaws, but “No Place Like Home” also has some delightful character work and an amusing plot. It doesn’t aspire to the heights of the full-length releases, naturally, and is all the better for it — and in the end it’s a delightful bonus to come along with a magazine.